1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wheeled vehicle having a stand, and more particularly to a wheeled vehicle having a stand to support the vehicle in an upright position.
2. Description of Related Art
Wheeled vehicles such as, for example, scooters and mopeds typically have a frame that supports front and rear wheels, an engine, a seat and other components. The engine is connected to a transmission to define an engine unit. The seat is located above the engine unit such that a rider can straddle the seat to drive the vehicle.
Typically, such a wheeled vehicle includes a stand to support the vehicle in an upright position. Conventionally, two types of stands are available. One type is designed to support the vehicle by lifting a rear wheel above the ground. This type of stand is usually called a main stand because the stand can support the vehicle for a long duration. Another type of stand is designed to support the vehicle together with the front and rear wheels being in contact with the ground. This type of stand is called as a sub stand or a kick stand because the stand can support the vehicle for shorter durations.
In one arrangement, the wheeled vehicle includes a main stand pivotally affixed to a bottom portion of the engine unit, and the engine unit is swingably suspended together with the main stand. For example, Japanese Patent Publication P2003-72611A discloses such an arrangement. The main stand in this arrangement, however, loses stability in supporting the vehicle due to long-term use.
With reference to FIGS. 1-3, a conventional main stand 20 includes a stand body 22. The stand body 22 includes a pair of legs. An engine unit 24 includes a bottom portion 26. A pivot pin extends through apertures 27 defined by the stand body 22 and the bottom portion 26 to pivotally couple the stand body 22 and the engine unit 24 with each other. A bias spring 28 extends between one of the legs and a side surface of the engine unit 24. The stand body 22 moves between an extended position and a retracted position. The stand body 22 extends to the ground to support the vehicle at the extended position as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, while the stand body 22 is retracted toward the engine unit 24 at the retracted position such that the stand body 22 does not extend to the ground. Usually, a top of the stand body 22 abuts the bottom portion of the engine unit 24 along a line. In both of the extended position and the retracted position, the bias spring 28 provides a compression force toward the stand body 22. Hence, the main stand 20 is firmly maintained at the extended position or the retracted position.
Because of being attached to the engine unit 24, the vibration of the engine unit 24 is transmitted to the main stand 20. The pivot pin thus can frequently move within the apertures 27. As a result, the aperture 27 can be worn and become larger after extended use. In addition, the swing movement of the engine unit 24 may accelerate the wear of the apertures 27. Under these conditions, the top end of the stand body 22 no longer abuts the bottom of the engine unit 24 along the line and rather touches the bottom portion 26 of the engine unit 24 at a point P1 because of the pull of the bias spring 28. The stand body 22 thus slightly inclines as indicated by the arrow B1 of FIG. 2 and stops at an extended position E1 of FIG. 3. The position E1 is different from a normal extended position EP that is indicated by the phantom line of FIG. 3.
The point P1 is located closer to the spring 28 than the line along which the tops of the legs 22 abut the bottom portion 26 of the engine unit 24. Thus, a distance L1 between the point P1 and the spring 28 is shorter than a former distance. The shorter distance L1 causes a smaller bias force to be applied by the spring 28 that can affect the stand body 22. The main stand 20 thus can easily move between the abnormal extended position E1 and the normal extended position EP. As a result, the main stand 20 loses stability in supporting the vehicle. In other words, the main stand 20 tends to move back to the retracted position when a light force is applied to the body of the vehicle.